The Providence College women’s ice hockey team defeated the Maine Black Bears, despite being down 3-2 after the first period. Providence improves to 13-12-2 and 8-7-2 in Hockey East play while Maine moves to 8-17-1 and 4-13-1 in Hockey East play.

The Friars and Black Bears started the game with a busy first period.

Providence took the lead 3:29 minutes into the first period when Brooke Boquist (Thunder Bay, Ontario) scored her fourteenth goal of the season. Christina Putigna (Grimsby, Ontario) moved the puck from the far corner of the offensive zone to Avery Fransoo (North Battleford, Saskatchewan) on the point. Fansoo fed Boquist on the half wall and the junior forward skated to the front of the net and across the crease to backhand the puck past Maine’s Carly Jackson’s pad.

Maine responded five minutes later with a goal from Brooke Stacey.

At 12:38 of the first period, Neve Van Pelt (Mitchell, Ontario) scored her second goal in as many games. Cassidy Carels (Bruxelles, Manitoba) forced a turnover along the half wall and sent a shot to the front of the net that rebounded to Madison Sansone (Lockport, N.Y.) and then to Van Pelt to give the Friars a 2-1 lead.

Maine tallied two quick goals at 15:59 from Catherine Tufts and 16:11 from Brooke Stacey to take the lead, 3-2.

The Friars scored four goals in the second period to take back the lead. At 8:31 Carels tallied her 46th career goal. The combination of Carels, Sansone, and Van Pelt worked again as Sansone passed the puck to Van Pelt in the corner and then to Carels in the high slot, who wristed it past Jackson and evened the score, 3-3.

The Friars took the lead at 11:49 in the second period when Rachel Rockwell (Broadview Heights, Ohio) skated off the bench and into a slapshot from the point that beat Jackson top-shelf. Meaghan Rickard (Coventry, R.I.) skated with the puck around the tops of the circles in the offensive zone and handed it off to Cassidy MacPherson (Oakville, Ontario). MacPherson moved the puck to the far point to tee it up for Rockwell.

Rickard put the Friars ahead 5-3 when Carels broke the puck out to Van Pelt along the half wall. Van Pelt sent a long saucer pass to Rickard on the far blue line and sent her on her way to skate in alone on Jackson and score her fifth goal of the season at 16:17 of the second period.

Seventeen seconds later Rickard added her third point of the game when she picked up a turnover in the offensive zone and moved it to Blair Parent (Blaine, Minn.) in the slot, who scored the Friars sixth and final goal of the game.

Just over two minutes into the third period, Maine’s Lydia Murray scored a power play goal to put the Black Bears back within two goals.

Madison Myers (Colchester, Vt.) made 17 saves in the final two periods to help the Friars close out the 6-4 victory.

Providence will finish the Hockey East series with Maine on Jan. 29 at 2:00 p.m. at Alfond Arena.